Present
Silence. It defined the planet flawlessly. The winds have died down, giving room to the unnatural lack of sounds. Endless plains of dark grey ash were the most peaceful and the most horrifying sight in the universe. A streak of lightning crept through the air, it had no place of origin, merely a meter long arrow of pure bright energy swam above the ground. A majestic and surreal moment, one that had no witnesses. Life ceased to exist on this world hundreds of eons ago, down to the atomic level, were it that physics had any meaning in the end. The mysterious string of furious plasma suddenly crashed against an invisible wall, shattering as if it was made from ice. The resulting flash explosion resembled a miniature sun, in which someone, if anyone would be present, could see an echo of days long gone.
3012
Laughter. It defined the situation flawlessly. Dozens of scientists stood in the conference room, drinking champagne in celebration of the finest moment in history of humanity. The jewel
in the crown was finally ready, after decades of research, development and construction, the brightest minds created the Accelerated Particle Harvester. Such simple idea, gathering energy without utilizing any form of fuel. A benefit to all of mankind, acquiring free and clean energy that will be distributed everywhere, to everyone. The APH network spanned the globe, its mainframe and control center in Neo Los Angeles, the city of angels. In just a few moments the machine will
be activated and everything will change, the energy crisis will finally be over. Economical struggle that lasted a thousand years and cost so many lives was finally coming to an end. Every scientist present in the room worked to the limits of intellect, they studied and analyzed all there was
to be studied and analyzed. The impressive screens in the conference and control rooms showed the main breaker room. On-the-spot staff was ready and simply waiting for the signal. People shouted from five to zero, laughing and cheering at this special moment. Staff activated the device, bringing the dawn of a golden age. After this, no one laughed ever again, not even the angels.
Present
The image faded away as suddenly as it appeared, the flash and lightning disappearing.
Once more it was completely silent and devoid of anything. Grains of ash moved with an almost nonexistent pace. Remains of the global civilization reduced to an infinite sea of ash. The horizon was perfect in its desolation, the sky empty, bland, grey. There was no sun nor stars yet the residual energy kept the world moderately bright, yet it mattered little to this lifeless husk of a planet. The only inhabitants were the mysterious and powerful beams of energy that traversed the endless plains. All that was left of humanity was contained in unstable flickers of light that lazily flew through the air without any goal or reason. Some exploded in the middle of their flight, others crashed against invisible walls, perhaps where the echoes of the past were still strong. Like a blanket, thunderbolts covered the planet, never-ending light show for an invisible cosmic audience.
No matter how many shattered, they were always replaced, new ones simply appeared, growing out of thin air. One of such intriguing bolts was slowly approaching a monument of unprecedented significance. There stood the remains of a wall, small, chipped, barely keeping together. There were not many such landmarks around the planet, small pieces of architecture that fate decided to spare, a punch line to a karmic joke. Lightning pressed against the ash covered wall and slowly cracked, seeping into the ancient bricks.
3012
The orange liquid crashed against the glass bottom, splashing against the surrounding walls. It was a sunny morning, typical Monday breakfast for a typical family. The husband and father walked into the kitchen and kissed his wife on the cheek. Their daughter was eating cereal from a plastic bowl decorated with images of smiling cats. Her mother was preparing a vegetarian meal from the plants farmed in their hydroponic garden. Once they were sitting together by a white table they talked about possibilities of a weekend trip.
All of a sudden, the whole three felt an ominous tremor and all of the lights went out. The father noticed the lack of electricity as nothing was working. What frightened them was what happened next. A blast wave of suffocation and complete lack of sound crashed against the people. They wanted to scream, to cry, to shout for help. Yet there was not even a whimper. With little air they had, just enough to stay alive and conscious, the family walked out of the house. Further scaring them was the fact they weren’t the only ones outside and not the only ones to see what was going on. Even though the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day, it was gradually getting darker till nothing could be seen anymore. The dreadful moment ended abruptly with a blinding violet flash
on the horizon. In utter silence the flash became bigger, soon turning into a wave of blinding light that covered everything on its path. The family realized too late that it was not all that the wave did. In less than a second they evaporated and turned to ash like everyone and everything around them. The energy moved on, decimating the suburbs and heading towards the city.
It was a sunny morning, typical Monday breakfast for a typical family.
Present
Ash.
All that remained of an ancient civilization, of its towns, roads, rules, laws or borders. Nations ceased to exist within one single blink of an eye. Earth became desolate and unwelcoming, it would never provide shelter nor resources. It will be home to death till the end of time.
A testament to the dangers of hubris and how fragile life is. A monument lit by storms of energy that raged across the barren globe. The fate of Earth, the legend of Terra might one day be revealed.
…for better or worse…
THE BEGINNING
Silence. It defined the planet flawlessly. The winds have died down, giving room to the unnatural lack of sounds. Endless plains of dark grey ash were the most peaceful and the most horrifying sight in the universe. A streak of lightning crept through the air, it had no place of origin, merely a meter long arrow of pure bright energy swam above the ground. A majestic and surreal moment, one that had no witnesses. Life ceased to exist on this world hundreds of eons ago, down to the atomic level, were it that physics had any meaning in the end. The mysterious string of furious plasma suddenly crashed against an invisible wall, shattering as if it was made from ice. The resulting flash explosion resembled a miniature sun, in which someone, if anyone would be present, could see an echo of days long gone.
3012
Laughter. It defined the situation flawlessly. Dozens of scientists stood in the conference room, drinking champagne in celebration of the finest moment in history of humanity. The jewel
in the crown was finally ready, after decades of research, development and construction, the brightest minds created the Accelerated Particle Harvester. Such simple idea, gathering energy without utilizing any form of fuel. A benefit to all of mankind, acquiring free and clean energy that will be distributed everywhere, to everyone. The APH network spanned the globe, its mainframe and control center in Neo Los Angeles, the city of angels. In just a few moments the machine will
be activated and everything will change, the energy crisis will finally be over. Economical struggle that lasted a thousand years and cost so many lives was finally coming to an end. Every scientist present in the room worked to the limits of intellect, they studied and analyzed all there was
to be studied and analyzed. The impressive screens in the conference and control rooms showed the main breaker room. On-the-spot staff was ready and simply waiting for the signal. People shouted from five to zero, laughing and cheering at this special moment. Staff activated the device, bringing the dawn of a golden age. After this, no one laughed ever again, not even the angels.
Present
The image faded away as suddenly as it appeared, the flash and lightning disappearing.
Once more it was completely silent and devoid of anything. Grains of ash moved with an almost nonexistent pace. Remains of the global civilization reduced to an infinite sea of ash. The horizon was perfect in its desolation, the sky empty, bland, grey. There was no sun nor stars yet the residual energy kept the world moderately bright, yet it mattered little to this lifeless husk of a planet. The only inhabitants were the mysterious and powerful beams of energy that traversed the endless plains. All that was left of humanity was contained in unstable flickers of light that lazily flew through the air without any goal or reason. Some exploded in the middle of their flight, others crashed against invisible walls, perhaps where the echoes of the past were still strong. Like a blanket, thunderbolts covered the planet, never-ending light show for an invisible cosmic audience.
No matter how many shattered, they were always replaced, new ones simply appeared, growing out of thin air. One of such intriguing bolts was slowly approaching a monument of unprecedented significance. There stood the remains of a wall, small, chipped, barely keeping together. There were not many such landmarks around the planet, small pieces of architecture that fate decided to spare, a punch line to a karmic joke. Lightning pressed against the ash covered wall and slowly cracked, seeping into the ancient bricks.
3012
The orange liquid crashed against the glass bottom, splashing against the surrounding walls. It was a sunny morning, typical Monday breakfast for a typical family. The husband and father walked into the kitchen and kissed his wife on the cheek. Their daughter was eating cereal from a plastic bowl decorated with images of smiling cats. Her mother was preparing a vegetarian meal from the plants farmed in their hydroponic garden. Once they were sitting together by a white table they talked about possibilities of a weekend trip.
All of a sudden, the whole three felt an ominous tremor and all of the lights went out. The father noticed the lack of electricity as nothing was working. What frightened them was what happened next. A blast wave of suffocation and complete lack of sound crashed against the people. They wanted to scream, to cry, to shout for help. Yet there was not even a whimper. With little air they had, just enough to stay alive and conscious, the family walked out of the house. Further scaring them was the fact they weren’t the only ones outside and not the only ones to see what was going on. Even though the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day, it was gradually getting darker till nothing could be seen anymore. The dreadful moment ended abruptly with a blinding violet flash
on the horizon. In utter silence the flash became bigger, soon turning into a wave of blinding light that covered everything on its path. The family realized too late that it was not all that the wave did. In less than a second they evaporated and turned to ash like everyone and everything around them. The energy moved on, decimating the suburbs and heading towards the city.
It was a sunny morning, typical Monday breakfast for a typical family.
Present
Ash.
All that remained of an ancient civilization, of its towns, roads, rules, laws or borders. Nations ceased to exist within one single blink of an eye. Earth became desolate and unwelcoming, it would never provide shelter nor resources. It will be home to death till the end of time.
A testament to the dangers of hubris and how fragile life is. A monument lit by storms of energy that raged across the barren globe. The fate of Earth, the legend of Terra might one day be revealed.
…for better or worse…
THE BEGINNING
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